Hiraeth: Return to Neverland (formerly titled: A Grown-Up in Neverland
by canadiandutchiefangirl
Summary: "He's a pirate, Wendy," she reminded herself. "You can't trust him." *** As memories of Neverland resurface, a grown-up Wendy decides to once again visit the magical island. A Peter Pan continuation fanfiction. Modern AU. Eventual Hook x Adult!Wendy (darlinghook).
1. memories

_And that's my home where dreams are born,_

 _And time is never planned._

 _Just think of lovely things,_

 _And your heart will fly on wings,_

 _Forever in Never Never Land._

Every morning it was the same as it had been for the past few years; the fuzziness of slowly waking up followed by that familiar pang of melancholy. In the beginning, Wendy wasn't even sure where it came from, that feeling in her chest that she was missing something. Something important.

On the morning of her eighteenth birthday, the feeling was accompanied by a name. Neverland. And with that one name, more and more started coming back to her, bits and pieces of memories slowly stitching themselves together. The adventures she and her brothers had had there. The Lost Boys. Tiger Lily and the natives. Captain Hook and the pirates.

And Peter.

How could she have forgotten Peter? Thinking back, he was the first boy that she really loved, and yet he had somehow slipped her mind. Still, he had forgotten about her. It took her some time to realize this, but she remembered him promising to come get her for every spring cleaning, and as hard as she tried, she could not remember ever returning to Neverland with him.

What she could remember was waiting for him. In the spring, she used to wait at the window for Peter to come get her. Every night she hoped that he hadn't forgotten, and when she could no longer pretend that it was still spring, she would be disappointed, but hopeful for the next year. After about three years of fruitless waiting, she had given up.

She had loved him, and he had forgotten her.

Then she had grown up, or at least, had wanted to and had acted as if she was. High school began and the memories of the boy who never grew up were pushed to the back of her mind.

Until now.

Wendy smiled as she drove up the driveway of her childhood home. Little had changed over the years, it was still the same small gray-brick house with light blue doors and window shutters. Maybe she could get some more answers here, it was at this house, after all, that all her adventures in Neverland had begun. She grabbed her duffel bag and purse from the passenger's seat and stepped out of the car. As she made her way to the door, her mother came outside to greet her.

"Wendy!" she said, enveloping her in a hug.

"Hi, Mom," Wendy replied, embracing her mother tightly.

Inside Michael was happy to see her. "Hey, Wendy!" he exclaimed, jumping up from the couch where he had been watching TV and running to give her a hug.

"Hi, Michael," Wendy said, smiling as she hugged him back. Releasing him, she asked, "Where's John?"

"I'm right here," John said as he came down the stairs.

"John, you've grown!" Wendy said, seeing that John was now almost a head taller than her.

Happily reunited, the three siblings made their way upstairs, Michael insisting on carrying Wendy's duffel bag for her. In the hallway, Nana, the family dog, slowly ambled her way toward them. At nine years old, Nana was not as fast as she used to be. The three children petted the dog and then continued to the bedroom.

What had once been the bedroom they all shared when they were younger was now the bedroom that Wendy used when she was home. While she was away, Nana had the entire room to herself.

Michael managed to lift the duffel bag up onto the bed and sat down beside it, breathing heavily. Wendy went immediately to the window and opened it, inhaling the fresh air as the breeze played with the light green curtains.

"Do you two remember?" she asked, staring into the distance out the window.

"Remember what?" John asked from where he stood by the door.

Wendy turned around and looked at her brothers. "You know, Neverland."

Michael and John looked at each other. "You mean the game we used to play," said John.

"And the stories you would tell us, about Peter Pan and Captain Hook?" Michael added.

"But they weren't just stories," Wendy exclaimed, confused. _Could they have forgotten?_ "don't you remember, we went there, to Neverland. We lived with Peter Pan and the Lost Boys. We rescued Tiger Lily from Captain Hook and the pirates. I pretended to be the mother and Peter Pan was the father." John's eyebrows rose slightly, and Wendy frowned at him. "Then we were kidnapped by the pirates and Peter Pan and Tinkerbell rescued us. Then we went home."

Michael's eyebrows were wrinkling together, like he was trying to remember something but couldn't put his finger on it. John just shook his head. "I remember playing those games, where we pretended that those things happened, but it wasn't real Wendy. Neverland isn't real. Peter Pan isn't real. And there's no such thing as fai-"

Rushing towards John, Wendy clamped her hand over his mouth before he finished his sentence. "Don't! You know what happens when you say that!"

John laughed. "Okay, now I know you're messing with us. I don't have time for this, I have practice in half an hour." He shook his head again and left the room.

Wendy turned imploringly to Michael. "Come on, Michael. Surely you remember something?"

He looked at her with his wide blue eyes and slowly shook his head. Wendy sighed and sat down at the chair by her desk. Michael slipped off the bed and ran downstairs.

Shaking her head, Wendy looked out the window from her seat.

 _Come away to Neverland._

 _Come with me where you'll never, never have to worry about grown-up things again._

It was evening, Wendy sat at the window, watching as the sky got darker and the stars began to slowly appear.

 _You won't forget me, will you?_

 _Me? Forget? Never._

What a liar he had been. Maybe he didn't mean to forget her, but even if he had only forgotten her accidentally, it just proved that he was just a little boy. And he would always be a little boy.

 _Come away to Neverland._

Oh, if only she could, but the only way to get there was to fly.

Fly. Wendy stood up.

 _Besides, I can't fly._

 _I'll teach you. I'll teach you to jump on the wind's back, and away we go._

What did she need to fly again? She scrunched her eyes shut. She needed... to think happy thoughts. Her eyes flew open and she scrambled onto the bed. Happy thoughts, that wouldn't be too hard.

Closing her eyes again, Wendy thought about Neverland, about swordfights and flying through the clouds. She took a breath and jumped off her bed, launching herself into the air parallel to the ground, blindly trusting that she would be held up by her thoughts.

Thump! Wendy groaned as she hit the ground. "Ow!" she exclaimed and rubbed her right elbow.

"Everything alright up there?" called Mrs. Darling from downstairs.

"Yeah, I just... tripped!" Wendy called down. She sat against her bed and frowned. What had she done wrong?

Pixie dust. She needed pixie dust.

Where on earth was she going to find that? Wendy ran her fingers through her long brown hair. This was getting more and more complicated. The only fairies she had ever seen were in Neverland, and she wasn't even sure if there were fairies here.

However, English folklore was filled with stories of fairies, and if there were fairies and mermaids in Neverland, maybe those stories were true as well.

Wendy knew what she had to do. She had to find a fairy, or at least some pixie dust.


	2. searching

Wendy shaded her eyes with her hand and then glanced down at the hand-drawn map she had received in the small-town bar about half an hour ago.

"I have got be close now," she muttered to herself, looking out in the distance again. To her left and right, a dense forest bordered the broad expanse of grass. Stuffing the map in her pocket, she slung her canvas backpack over her shoulder again and kept hiking through the field.

Just as she was about to give up and go back, she saw a hill in the distance with what looked like a stone structure on top of it.

Commonly known as the Fairy King's Castle, the area around it was shrouded in myth, with fairy stone circles and mysterious stories. In the year and a half since her flying attempt, Wendy had explored many supposed magical places, fairy circles, fairy steps and fairy gardens, but had yet to find anything that would help her to go to Neverland. She had never seen a small bright light flit out of sight, or even the telltale sparkle of pixie dust on a flower or a stone.

She came upon the first stone circle a few minutes later. As far as she could see, it was a perfect circle and the stones seemed to have been there for a long time. It wasn't very large, maybe a meter and a half in diameter.

After glancing around the circle quickly to see if anything stood out, Wendy carefully looked at the twelve individual rocks and, after some measurements, found them all spaced the same amount apart. She scribbled this in her notebook and then looked up to the ruins of the castle that stood at the top of the hill.

Her parents had been surprised when Wendy had told them that she wanted to do something with research about British mythology and folklore. They told her to first finish her bachelor's in psychology and after doing that, she had started working for a folklore research journal. This job had given her the excuse to go to all sorts of magical places all over the country, doing research for the journal and trying to find any sign of fairies.

Tramping up the hill, Wendy couldn't help but smile as she thought about what her colleagues' reactions would be if they knew that she actually believed in fairies and had even seen one.

The castle was not very large, but it was dimly lit, the only light coming from the sunshine that peeked in through holes in the ceiling, and Wendy rummaged in her backpack to find her flashlight. Turning it on, she slowly stepped over the threshold and looked around. The man at the bar had told her that the castle was safe and that tourists often came to look at it, but she was cautious nonetheless.

It was only one room, the rest had probably fallen away with time, the walls covered in vines and moss. The stone floor was cracked and grass and wildflowers sprouted in between them. A small tree had managed to break through some of the stones and it stood almost as high as the walls.

Wendy wished that she could tell when a place was truly magical or if it was just an old wives tale. She had this hope that if she came upon a place that had traces of fairy magic that she would be able to feel it.

She definitely did not have that feeling here, although she wasn't sure what exactly it would feel like. This place felt old and it was fascinating, but it was not anything magical. But for the journal, she had to check everything out, to see if there was anything interesting enough to write about.

After taking a few pictures and scribbling down a few notes, she was ready to leave. She turned to go, but then she saw something glitter out of the corner of her eye. She whipped her head around and saw something sparkling in the moss at the far end of the ruin, where the thrones would have been in the Great Hall of the castle.

Her heart thumping, Wendy breathed out slowly and made her way over to the other side. What could it be? Not a fairy, their lights were much brighter; but it could just be some pixie dust left behind by one. This was the first time that she had seen anything that could help her, and she stopped for a moment, reminding herself that, more likely than not, it was nothing.

Taking a deep breath, she stepped forward and looked at what was emitting the hopeful sparkle.

It was not pixie dust.

It was a chocolate bar wrapper.

Even though she had prepared herself for the disappointment, Wendy felt her heart sink. She licked her lips and closed her eyes for a moment. It was still just litter when she opened them again and she blinked a few times, trying to keep the tears at bay, breathing deeply to calm herself down.

Breathing in. It was going to be okay.

Breathing out. She would find a way eventually.

In. She just had to keep looking.

Out. Just had to keep looking.

But what if she never found anything? What if there were no fairies here, and they all just lived in Neverland, never leaving a trace on the mainland?

"What if..." she finally spoke aloud the fear that had been living in the back of her mind ever since speaking to John and Michael about Neverland. "What if I imagined the whole thing? What if it wasn't real?"

She heard something behind her and feared for a second that someone had heard her, but when she spun around, she saw that it was just a sheep.

"Beh-eh," the sheep bleated.

A brief relieved laugh escaped her lips and she picked up the garbage to throw out when she got back into town and left the Castle of the Fairy King. She felt as she usually did after an unsuccessful search for fairies, disappointed but still not allowing her hope to die.


	3. hope

The Faerie Tree. That's what the tourist website of this tiny town had called it.

It was an ancient oak tree, almost a thousand years old apparently. Its trunk was enormously wide in diameter, and some of the larger branches were so heavy that they bent to the ground.

Wendy could not help but have a sense of awe as she approached the tree. It had stood there for centuries, had been the part of so many people's lives over the years and had weathered so many storms. A small voice in the back of her mind whispered that if she did not find any traces of fairies here, then she wouldn't find it anywhere.

There was an almost heavy feel to the air, and it was astoundingly quiet. Wendy had purposefully gone in the afternoon on a weekday so as to be alone.

She gazed up at the branches as she slowly walked around the tree, hardly daring to breathe. If ever she had felt the presence of something magical, it was here. But she hardly dared to think of that, hardly dared to hope, because if she hoped, she could be disappointed. And if she was disappointed, she might give up and never go back to Neverland again.

There.

In the higher branches.

Could it be...?

Wendy squinted up into the tree.

It definitely could be.

She glanced around to make sure that she was truly alone, then grabbed a plastic container from her bag and shoved it in her pocket. The sign at the entrance had said expressly that there was to be no climbing of this ancient tree, but Wendy had no choice. If she ignored the twinkle in the branches, she would regret for the rest of her life that she may have missed her chance to go back.

So, Wendy hauled herself up the tree, the art of tree-climbing coming back to her as she neared the place that could either disappoint her terribly or give her what she had been looking for. Her heart thumped in anticipation.

Perched on a branch, Wendy saw what had sparkled and caught her eye below. She caught her breath, it was not a chocolate bar wrapper this time. Lining the dark green leaves of the tree was a golden dust that reminded Wendy of the glitter she used to put on every craft when she was younger.

Instinctively, she reached out to touch it, but she stopped herself. She could not waste a single speck of it if she was going to make it to Neverland, hopefully with her brothers. She took the plastic container out of her pocket and proceeded to carefully detach the leaves covered in the precious substance from the tree and place them in the container.

Once she had all of it, she quickly closed the container and descended the tree. She put the container in her backpack and as she made her way back to her jeep, she could not help but grin like a all those years of searching, she had finally found her ticket to Neverland. All that was left to do was to try to convince her brothers to come with her.


	4. decision

"Wendy's home!" rang Michael's call from his perch in the tree house. The eleven-year-old dropped his binoculars to the boards that made up the floor and scrambled down the ladder, dropping barefoot to the ground.

When she started travelling to the isolated places she researched for work, Wendy sold her car and bought a second-hand jeep that was bright green. It was far better for driving on dirt roads and she liked the colour. It also made it very easy for anyone who knew her to know she had arrived.

The jeep rattled down the street and as Wendy approached the house, she could see the bedroom window from which she had flown to Neverland. The sight of Michael running barefoot through the yard reminded her even more of their adventures. She now kept the pixie dust in a small stoppered glass vial that she wore around her neck and was certain that when they saw it, they would be convinced that Neverland had been real. Then they could all go there together and they would all have truly wonderful adventures.

"Michael, John," Wendy said, as they sat in the living room. She glanced behind her to make sure that their mother was in the kitchen. Their father was at work. "I'd like to talk to you about something." She rose and gestured for them to follow her upstairs.

In her bedroom, Wendy stood in her usual spot by the window. Michael sat down on the bed and John went to sit on the chair by the desk. They looked at Wendy expectantly.

Wendy wasn't sure what to say. The last time she had mentioned Neverland outright, she had not had the best reaction. Even though Michael was younger than she had been when she went to Neverland, and John was only a little older than she had been, they seemed to have completely forgotten. Then she remembered a trick she had taught herself, a way to see the mermaid lagoon. "Close your eyes," she ordered them.

"What?" said John. "Why?"

"Just do it," she said.

Hesitantly, they both did. "Now," she continued. "you will see a shapeless pool of pale colours, floating around in the darkness." She paused, but saw no reaction on her brothers' faces. "Squeeze your eyes tighter and the pool becomes clearer and the colours become so vivid that it almost looks like they're on fire." Michael frowned for a moment, like he was trying to remember something, but it disappeared so quickly, Wendy wondered if she had imagined it. "With another squeeze, they definitely are on fire, but right before they go on fire, what do you see?"

Both Michael and John opened their eyes immediately and for one lovely, painfully fleeting moment, Wendy saw recognition in their eyes as they stared at each other, then at her.

"Did you see it?" she asked, breathlessly. "You guys both saw it, didn't you?"

His expression reverting back to its skepticism of the last time, John said, "Saw what?"

"The Mermaid Lagoon."

"The-" John shook his head. "I don't know what has gotten into you Wendy, but you have to realize that it was all a game we played. Michael barely even remembers what the game was about, much less believes that it was all real, right Michael?"

Michael nodded.

"But I found pixie dust!" Wendy exclaimed, gripping the pendant that hung around her neck. "It took a few years of searching, but I finally found some. I think it's enough for all of us to get back."

"Is that all your job has been about?" John asked in disbelief. "You've been driving around the country, going to supposed magical places looking for fairy dust?" He stood up. "And Mom and Dad were worried about you before."

Wendy let go of the vial. "Mom and Dad are worried about me? Whatever for?"

"Don't you see it?" Michael asked. "They think you're wasting your time working for the journal."

"What?"

John nodded. "You're the smart one, Wendy, you were supposed to go study psychology and get a Master's degree or whatever. Now you're working for a magazine that writes about goblins, witches and the little people."

Indignant, Wendy could not help but defend her employer. "The _Folklore and Myth_ is a prestigious academic journal that studies ancient folklore and legends around the world."

His eyebrows rose. "You tell Mom and Dad that." The front door opened and closed. Their father's footsteps could be heard as he made his way from the front entrance into the living room. "Looks like he's home. Michael and I will leave you to it." And with that, they left the room.

Wendy stood by herself at the window, feeling like she had had the wind knocked out of her. Weren't her parents proud of her? She was doing what she enjoyed and had the opportunity to travel all over the country, visiting fascinating places. Wasn't that enough for them?

Before she could think better of it, she stormed downstairs, finding both her parents in the living room. They looked up in surprise to see her enter in such a state.

"What is it, Wendy?" her mother asked.

"I don't know, Mom?" Wendy asked, looking from her mother to her father. "What is wrong with my job?"

Her parents looked at each other knowingly. "Why don't you sit down and tell us what you mean." Her father suggested, taking a seat.

Shaking her head, Wendy continued. "John told me. You guys are worried about me? You think I'm wasting my time with the journal?"

"Sweetheart, we just thought that you always wanted to study psychology, ever since the beginning of high school." Mrs. Darling said, soothingly. "We were surprised at your change of interest. You hadn't talked about fairy-tales since you were little."

"So you don't think I should be working for the journal? You think I should go back to school and study psychology again?" Wendy couldn't take any more of her parents' expressions and stormed from the room, running up the stairs to her bedroom. She didn't hear them follow her.

They didn't think that her job was good enough. Well, she didn't really need her job anymore, did she? Not where she was going.


	5. stars

Wendy looked out the window and saw the first few stars starting to appear. Soon she would be able to go and she wouldn't have to come back unless she wanted to. Rifling through her suitcase, she tried to think of what she should wear and take there.

She decided on a pair of loose camouflage pants with lots of pockets and a green t-shirt with a black hoodie over top. In her canvas backpack she already had some things she always took with her: a box of matches, a rain jacket, and a spy-glass. Binoculars were probably much more practical, but the spy-glass reminded her of Neverland. She strapped a short hunting knife that she sometimes used in her research to her side and quickly looked around to see if she was missing anything. She put the roll of bandages in from her first-aid kit and thought about going barefoot, just for old times sake, but decided that that wasn't practical and pulled on a pair of boots that went halfway up her calf.

Looking outside, Wendy saw that the sky had darkened to almost black and she opened the window, breathing in the fresh air. She took the vial off her necklace and carefully poured out its contents onto her open hand. It really wasn't a lot and she doubted that it would have been enough for John and Michael too. Taking a deep breath, she closed her hand and slowly lifted it above her head, letting the sparkling dust sprinkle over her head and shoulders.

Wendy closed her eyes and thought of Neverland. Not of Peter, or Tink, or the mermaids or the Lost Boys, just the island itself. She giggled when she felt her feet leave the ground and she quickly opened her eyes. Her head bobbed against the ceiling and she quickly got the hang of flying again, taking a couple spins around the room.

But she knew that she did not have as much pixie dust as she could have hoped for, and that she couldn't waste any of it. On a piece of paper on her desk, Wendy wrote the word 'Neverland' in big letters, but she knew that this would hardly convince her brothers. With one look back at the room, Wendy flew out into the night.

Oh, the feeling of flying! Wendy had not realized how much she had missed it until she soared out the window and into the open air. It was truly the feeling of freedom. She couldn't help but giggle as she flew into the tree in the backyard and alighted on a high branch to get her bearings.

She looked up and was happy to see that the second star to the right was clear. After one look back at the house, she thought of Neverland again and rose off the branch. Smiling widely, Wendy was so excited, she completely forgot her argument with her parents. She was going back to Neverland. Nothing else mattered.

And so she flew to the bright star that beckoned her in the dark night sky.

The only part of her plan that Wendy had been worried about was finding the way. She had only flown to Neverland once, and that was with Peter guiding them. Well, not the whole way, sometimes he'd disappeared and had adventures, almost forgetting who they were when he returned.

Wendy shook her head and flew steadily on, through cloud banks where she could hardly see ahead of her, but she always emerged from them and was able to see the star again. She had the thought in the back of her mind that she soon should be having a tough time breathing, but even though she kept flying higher, she was still fine. Soon, however, the second star to the right disappeared.

She was passing stars now. Not the huge balls of fiery gas, but shining orbs of light, the largest no bigger than a basketball. Remembering that Peter had mentioned talking to them, Wendy said, "Hello?"

For a moment, there was silence, but then Wendy heard a strange, twinkling giggle.

"I'm going to Neverland," she continued. "could you help me find the way?"

Another giggle. Then, she saw small silver arrows that seemed to be made of pure light pointing ahead of her.

Wendy smiled. "Thank you." And she flew, following the arrows the stars had provided.

Although in the beginning, Wendy had been able to tell, in general, how long she had been flying, the farther she went, the less relevant time became. Every time she checked her watch, it was either going too fast, too slow or had stopped entirely. Once she even looked down to find it going backwards.

The arrows were getting larger, brighter and were more gold than silver. Wendy realized that it was no longer the stars guiding her, but the sun itself. She smiled, that meant she was getting close.

It was no longer night around her and she saw the blue of the ocean in the distance. Her heart thumping in her chest, she flew faster, eager to see the island.

And there is was, almost exactly as she recalled it, maybe a little smaller. There was the Native village, the Mermaid Lagoon, Cannibal's Cove and the Jolly Roger anchored near it.

But she barely had time to admire the island, because as she approached it, the last of the pixie dust was used up and she slowly started to fall to the water. She tried to hold out her arms and slow her fall but it wasn't much use.

She got closer and closer to the water and quickly prepared herself to dive in. It did seem like the best way to do it and she dove straight down, grateful that she had had the presence of mind to keep her matchbox in a plastic bag. She quickly swam to the surface, gasping for air, and blinked in the bright sunlight that reflected off the water.

Treading water, she pushed her short hair back from her face and planned her course of action. Luckily, she had not lost her backpack or either of her boots underwater. She put her boots and her sweater and put it inside too and then started making her way towards the island.


	6. arrival

There was something different on the island, and all the major players could feel it. Something had changed.

Peter noticed it as he sat in his little house in the trees playing his pan flute. He put the instrument down and looked out his window, immediately alert. It felt like the arrival of a Lost Boy, and yet... not. Tink had noticed his movement and flitted in from her small home on a nearby branch.

She asked Peter what was wrong in her strange bell-like language.

"I don't know, Tink. It's like someone has arrived from the mainland, but not a Lost Boy."

"Who else could it be?"

He shrugged. "If it's not a Lost Boy, it's not really my problem." He went back to playing his pan flute without a care in the world.

"What if it's another pirate?"

He stopped playing and looked at Tink. "I'll go ask the mermaids." And with that, he flew out his window to consult those mysterious creatures that lived in the sea.

Tiger Lily, now the chief of the Piccaninny Tribe, sensed Wendy's arrival almost immediately while she helped smoke-dry meat brought back from the hunt. Although she was the chief, she did help the other women in the village with the everyday chores.

She stood up, stepping away from the heat of the fire and wiping her brow. Hausis and Kimi looked up, but Tiger Lily gestured to them to continue. She walked over to Machk, one of the strongest of the braves, who was sitting by another fire, sharpening his fishing spear. "Machk," she said and he turned towards her.

"Chief Tiger Lily," he replied respectfully. Tiger Lily's chest swelled a little with pride. When her father had died, she wasn't sure if her tribe would respect a female chief, but they had known her all her life and were happy to have her as their leader.

"There has been an arrival on the island," she said. "and it's different than usual, not just another one of those boys."

Machk nodded and put down his spear and knife. "I'll take two braves and scout out the island to see who it is."

Tiger Lily shook her head. "I'm coming too, go get Kitchi."

Not too much longer, the three disappeared almost silently into the trees.

Captain Hook was lounging in his cabin on the Jolly Roger when he felt it. At first, he thought it was the winds changing, but there was no movement in the ship or sound of the sails. Still, it felt so much like the winds had changed, like something in their course had changed.

Putting on his hat and strapping on his sword, he went out on deck. Everything seemed normal and the crew didn't seem bothered about anything, a few of them playing cards at the far end of the deck.

And yet...

He looked out to the island, not too far away, searching for anything different, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. He thought he saw some movement in the trees and quickly took out his spyglass. There, barely visible, was Tiger Lily and two of her strongest braves.

They moved quickly through the trees and were soon invisible again. Putting his spy-glass away, Hook stroked his chin with his namesake on his right arm. If Tiger Lily was on the move with her two strongest braves, then something was up. Perhaps she had felt the same thing he had.

Maybe the winds hadn't changed, but something else definitely had.

Wendy almost cried in relief when she felt the solid rocks underneath her feet. She was quite sure she had never swum so far in her life before, she thought as she collapsed onto the rocky shore. Her arms and legs were so wobbly that she could barely crawl up the rocks.

After she caught her breath, Wendy worked her way up to a sitting position, facing the water and thought about what to do next. Her plan hadn't really gone much farther than getting to Neverland, she had not thought about where she would live, and what she would eat, only about getting to Neverland and then everything would be okay.

But Wendy had always been very practical, even in her quest to get back to Neverland, and she soon had a plan. Before she had really come to Neverland, she had visited it numerous times in her imagination, and in that imaginary Neverland, she had not lived in the Home under the Ground with the Lost Boys. In that Neverland, she had lived in a house of leaves deftly sewn together with her pet wolf that had been forsaken by its parents. And all personal Neverlands were really one Neverland, so she would find her house and her wolf and work from there.

She had matches (and dry ones at that), a hunting knife, a spyglass, a raincoat, a sweater, and a roll of bandages, all in a canvas backpack that was basically unbreakable.

She would survive and she would have adventures. Wendy smiled and slowly got up, pulling on her boots. She was going to be fine.


	7. adventure

Somehow, Wendy knew the way to her house made of leaves. She figured out that she had landed on the beach around Blindman's Bluff, which was between the Cannibal Cove and the Mermaid Lagoon. As she tramped through the hot forest of palm trees, she gravitated inland and soon came upon a house made of large leaves all sewn together. It blended in with the forest quite nicely and was difficult to see if one didn't know where it was.

Suddenly, she heard someone approaching in the woods and scampered into her little house, just closing the large leaf that served as a door before two figures came into sight. Wendy could see them through a small hole in the wall near the ground. She caught her breath, they were pirates.

Gripping her hunting knife in her hand, Wendy stayed very quiet as she waited for the pirates to pass by. They seemed to be looking for something, hands on the hilts of their swords as they searched the forest around them with sharp eyes. She didn't recognize either of them, but that was to be expected. She had thought that most of the pirates had been killed in the battle on the Jolly Roger. But whoever they were, she was quite sure that she could not trust them.

"I can't believe we got sent on this wild goose chase," muttered one of the pirates as they passed closer to Wendy's house. "I was about to win that game of blackjack."

"You know the cap'n, you don't wanna refuse his orders," the other pirate replied. Who is the captain now? Wendy wondered.

"Not unless you want to shake hands with his hook," said the first pirate. They were quiet for a moment, then laughed quietly and passed by the house without seeing it.

Wendy could barely breathe, and it wasn't just because she was trying to be quiet. Captain James Hook, captain of the Jolly Roger, the only man of whom the Sea Cook had been afraid, was still alive? She listened carefully to the pirates getting farther away and allowed herself to breathe more freely. How was he still alive? He had practically fallen into the mouth of the crocodile.

Adventure was coming very quickly, almost too soon for Wendy's taste. But that was what she was here for, wasn't she? And for adventure, she needed a better weapon than just her hunting knife.

So, Wendy steeled herself and quietly stepped out of her house. Her boots had soft soles and didn't make too much sound on the springy ground, and Wendy, knife in hand, scurried after the pirates. She knew how foolish this seemed, but she was in Neverland, where everything was nicely crammed, with little room between one adventure and the next.

She soon caught up with the pirates and stayed in the underbrush, planning her attack. She couldn't take both of them on.

Finding a rock on the ground, Wendy tossed it behind the pirates, where it hit a tree beside the pirate that was the farthest away from her.

They both froze for a moment and the next moment, their swords were out. One went to go look what had made the sound, leaving the other out in the open. Seeing her chance, Wendy quietly came out of the bushes and pushed to point of her knife to his back. He was much bigger than her, but he didn't know that.

"Drop your sword and any other weapons you have," she said quietly, masking her voice. "Don't make a sound."

The pirate slowly set down his sword and went to his belt to take out a dagger and a pistol. "Hurry!" she growled. She didn't have much time; the other pirate would be back any second now.

The dagger and the pistol dropped to the ground and Wendy heard the other pirate coming back. Quickly, she picked up the three weapons in one hand, keeping the knife to the pirate's back, and then ran as fast as she could into the bushes again.

"Get him!" shouted the pirate who lacked a sword and Wendy could hear them both crashing through the forest after her.

She ran, holding the weapons tightly, and though she ran for her life, there was a strange exhilaration that ran through her body. The kind of feeling that only comes when one is either running or fighting for their life. Boy, how she'd missed it!

Her house was in sight now and she slid, feet first, over the ground and through the leaf-door and into the house. Holding her breath and the sword so that it was poised to skewer anyone who came through the door, Wendy heard the pirates stampede past, cursing.

Wendy smiled. She had had her first adventure back on the island only a few hours after arriving and it had been very successful. She now had a sword, a dagger, and a pistol in addition to her hunting knife. Now that she could protect herself, it was time to figure out who she could trust.

The pirates, obviously not. Especially if Hook was still alive and their captain. The fairies and the mermaids were too unpredictable and she couldn't trust them. And while the Lost Boys would probably be overjoyed to see her again, she really didn't want to see Peter.

The Piccaninny tribe was more difficult to figure out. They had been on their side the last time, but that was when she was on Peter's side and Peter had rescued Tiger Lily. There was also no way to know if anyone would recognize her as the Wendy from so many years ago. She was an adult now and had cut her hair short.

The best course of action right now was to stick to herself and maybe sabotage the pirates. She also needed to find her pet wolf and get some food. All this adventuring sure gave one an appetite.


	8. blue

Captain Hook was furious. All he had asked his men to do was scout out the island for the new arrival and see if whoever it was, was a threat. Now they were back and had been outsmarted, by who?

"We don't know who it was, cap'n," Bill said. "He came up behind me with a knife and made me drop my weapons."

"And where were you while this happened?" Hook turned to Morris.

"I was in the bushes. I thought I heard something."

"So, who was it when you turned around? A large, muscular man with a sharp dagger that you had no chance against?"

Bill suddenly found the deck at his feet fascinating. "I dunno. He ran off quick. Wasn't very tall, but he sounded much older when he talked."

"He outsmarted you by disguising his voice." Hook was dangerously calm. "Lord help us all if Pan lowers his voice. Although, if it was a boy, he's probably on his way to him now."

Morris shook his head. "Was going the wrong way for that. Wrong side of the island. Probably is hiding out near Blindman's Bluff."

"Get out of my sight, both of you!" Hook snarled, and the two pirates quickly obeyed.

He leaned back in his chair, tapping his armrest absentmindedly with his hook. So, there was a boy on the island, but he was not with Pan, and from the sound of it, he seemed older. But even if he wasn't with Pan, he was a threat, and now he had weapons.

Those fools!

It took Wendy a while before she found the type of wood she was looking for. The trees by Blindman's Bluff were tropical and unfamiliar to her, so she had had to go to the forest by Cannibal Cove. It wasn't as far as she had thought.

With her newly acquired sword and pistol strapped to her belt, she sat at the base of a willow tree, making herself a bow and some arrows. She had thought of using the pistol to hunt, but she had no way to get new ammunition and on an island so small, it was bound to be heard by everyone.

A rustle in the bushes. Wendy jumped up, holding her sword in her right hand, her left hovering near the pistol.

"Who is it?" she said, hiding the fear in her voice.

There was no movement in the bushes.

"Come out slowly," she ordered. She heard the soft snapping of branches as a small gray wolf came into sight.

"Blue!" she exclaimed, dropping her sword and rushing forward. The wolf's tail wagged as he bounded toward her. Wendy embraced him, kissing the top of his furry head. "I knew I'd find you," she said. "Or you'd find me." Blue howled joyfully in response.

It was a sweet reunion, but it had to be cut short. Wendy was in pirate territory, the Jolly Roger anchored just off the coast. They might have heard them, so she quickly picked up her things and strapped her sword to her belt again.

The woman and wolf slipped back into the trees, heading back to Blindman's Bluff.

But where have Tiger Lily and her two braves, Machk and Kitchi been this whole time? Although only Hook had seen them all afternoon, they had seen everything else. They could be almost completely silent if they wanted to be. Tiger Lily had seen Wendy, and even though Wendy had worried that she had changed too much to be recognized, she knew who she was immediately. She did not forget as quickly as Peter did.

They had watched Wendy fool the pirates and Tiger Lily could not help but think that they might have an ally in Wendy. After all, the enemy of one's enemy is often one's friend.

After finding where Wendy was living, they returned to their camp as silently as they had come.

Peter Pan flew over Mermaid Lagoon. The mermaids lounged on the rocks, combing their hair and singing lazily in the sun.

"Hello, Peter!" one mermaid called.

It was late afternoon, so Marooner's Rock was in full view. Peter landed on it softly and the mermaids slipped into the water, swimming toward him.

"Hello, mermaids," he said, cheerfully.

"Have you come to play our bubble game with us again?" asked another mermaid, combing her long black hair.

Though they seemed a little foolish and acted like airheads, even Peter knew better. They were mysterious creatures that always seemed to know what was going on and should not be trifled with.

"No," he said. "I want to know who's new on the island."

"New on the island?" a red-headed mermaid mused, and the mermaids looked at each other. A few smiled knowingly. "Oh!" she exclaimed, as though remembering something. "Yes, there is someone new."

"It's very strange," said a mermaid quietly.

The others all chimed in.

"Strange indeed."

"Travelled here with pixie dust."

"And yet is not a child."

"Very strange."

"A grown-up?" Peter asked. "Who flew here?"

The mermaids nodded.

"Who is the grown-up with? The pirates? The Piccaninny tribe?"

"No one right now... although," she paused, as though hearing something. "Well, that is curious."

"What is?" said Peter, growing irritated.

They giggled. "That is not for you to know, Peter Pan." With that, they all slipped back into the water.

"Hey!" Peter cried, but they didn't listen to him. He frowned, it was time for some island scouting. He had to know whose side this grown-up was on

.

Said grown-up had just successfully shot two birds with her bow. Feeling extremely proud of herself, Wendy waited for Blue to fetch them. It had only taken her about twenty shots. Oh, well, she would have lots of time to practise.

As she hunted, she had formulated a plan on how she was going to spend her time on the island. It was Neverland, so she couldn't just live in her little house, hunting and eating birds. She needed adventure, that was part of the reason she was here.

So, she was going to defeat the pirates and take over the Jolly Roger.

It was a very ambitious goal, to say the least, but she wasn't exactly going to storm the Jolly Roger on her own, she had a plan. She would accumulate some weapons, stealing from the pirates, and work on her swordplay.

Her first thing to do was to remove their leader from the picture. So, once she felt she was ready, she would sneak aboard the ship and kill Captain Hook. The pirates wouldn't have a leader, or at least, not one like him. Then, she would pick them off one by one.

It was still quite ambitious, but this is Neverland and anything is possible.

Wendy cooked up one of her birds on a fire a fair distance away from her house so that she wouldn't alert everyone about where her hideaway was. The other bird was Blue's, who deserved it after finding both birds in the thick underbrush.

It was getting dark and Wendy stood up and stomped out the fire. With Blue following close behind, she made her way back to her little house. Tomorrow she would scout out the island.


	9. pirates

Wendy had been on the island for about three days. At least, she thought it was three days. There had definitely been three nights. Sometimes the days seemed too long, but it had given her time to practise her swordplay.

She was ready now.

It was finally dark. The day had lasted longer than usual. Wendy crouched in the bushes at the edge of the forest. Blue sat beside her. Some fog had rolled in and that was perfect; it would muffle sound and would allow her to swim to the ship without being heard.

The Jolly Roger sat ominously on the surface, lamps flickering and being reflected on the water. Wendy had left her boots behind and still wore the clothes she had arrived in. She hoped that she could steal some weapons and new clothes.

She had washed her clothes in Cannibal Cove and had gone swimming as they dried, but only once because she had felt so vulnerable, especially with no real allies.

Before she slipped into the water, Wendy took inventory of her weapons. She had the dagger and the sword that she had taken from the pirates strapped to her belt. The pistol she kept in a tightly sealed plastic bag in her pocket to keep the powder dry. She had her hunting knife and had thought of bringing her bow and arrows as well to maybe pick off a few of the pirates on watch. But she wasn't confident enough about her aim, and one bad shot could alert the whole ship.

Her goal was to get on the ship undetected, kill Captain Hook, maybe get some supplies and then leave.

Wendy took a deep breath and slowly waded into the water. Blue followed her and they both swam towards the ship.

The Jolly Roger loomed above them as they approached. Suddenly, Wendy realized that while she could climb up the side of the ship, Blue could not. She looked over at him and he seemed to understand. With a look at her and then up at the ship, he started swimming back to the island.

She watched him go, then swam farther to the front of the ship, soon finding ladder rungs fixed to the side. Squaring her jaw and mentally preparing herself for the fight, she started silently climbing up the side of the ship.

At the top, she peeked over the side and saw two pirates on duty. Neither of them looked familiar to her. One stood by the forecastle while the other was closer to the captain's quarters, standing by the steps that went up to the quarter deck.

The one by the forecastle walked back and forth, and the other stayed in one place. She would never get aboard without the former seeing her.

Looking down again and noticed a small ledge a little ways down from the ship's railing. Quickly, she shuffled along it, holding onto the edge of the ship and keeping her head down.

She was about to peek over the edge, but she heard his steps approaching. Wendy held her breath, praying that he had not heard her, but he didn't seem to be in any kind of hurry. She waited until he had just turned, then she launched herself over the railing and held her dagger at his back.

"Not a sound," she growled quietly.

The pirate froze and Wendy quickly knocked him over the head with the butt of the dagger, trying to catch him before he hit the ground. He was heavy but she managed to put him on the steps to the forecastle deck and it sort of looked like he had sat down.

At the other side of the main deck, the other pirate had noticed that his crewmate had stopped walking, and he glanced over. Wendy quickly hid in the shadows behind the steps.

"Hey, Marius," called the pirate. "tired of pacing?"

Marius, being unconscious, said nothing.

"Marius?" He started making his way towards the front of the ship and Wendy smiled. This was going very well. She waited for him to come closer, her sword ready in her hand.

Just as he came close enough to notice that Marius was unconscious, Wendy stepped out into the light, holding her sword out in front of her. "Don't make a sound," she said, in her real voice. There was no point now pretending to be anyone else.

He looked confused for a moment, but then an amused smile spread across his face. "And who are you?"

"I am Wendy Darling, and I am taking over your ship," Wendy said confidently. It wasn't exactly the plan, but he didn't know that.

His eyebrows arched. "Is that so?" He pulled out a cutlass and attacked, but Wendy parried easily. His manner was sloppy, relying on brute force than on swordplay. So, while he was stronger and bigger than Wendy was, she could match him quite well. After all, Peter Pan had taught her how to handle a sword, and for all his faults, he was a good swordsman... swordsboy.

He got close a few times, slashing a hole in her pants and just grazing her thigh. She cut him on the arm, and soon after that he got so close to her neck she thought she was done for.

And yet, she was having the time of her life. Something about the adrenaline coursing through her and the swordplay and the life-or-death-ness of the situation made her feel alive. Even with the practice of the last couple days, it was now all coming back to her.

She found a hole in his defences and plunged her sword into his stomach without hesitation. Surprise etched his face as he realized he had been beaten and he gave a sort of choked cough.

Wendy's eyes widened. Everything until now had been very different, it had been like a game, like the stories she used to tell her brothers and the Lost Boys.

But this was real. She had just stabbed someone. She couldn't just watch him die, so in her panic, she pushed him over the edge of the ship. The splash was louder than she had expected and she jumped, looking around her wildly, expecting pirates to suddenly appear at the noise.

None did, and Wendy tried to breathe deeply and slow her racing heart. There was blood on her sword and she quickly cleaned it on her shirt, leaving a great red stain on the green fabric. She checked the cut on her leg, but it was nothing serious. She took some rope from the deck and used it to tie up and gag the unconscious pirate to make sure he didn't warn anyone.

Now it was time to do what she had come to do. Bracing herself for what was to come, Wendy made her way to the captain's cabin, her bare feet making hardly any noise on the wooden deck. The door was unlocked and she entered quietly, leaving it slightly ajar behind her.

Sword held out in front of her, Wendy crept into the cabin. It was fairly dark, but she could make out the shapes of a desk, some chests against the wall and a bed to the left. She tiptoed to the bed, but it was empty. Where was he?

Suddenly, the door closed and Wendy jumped.

"What do we have here?" asked a smooth voice from behind her.

The voice of Captain Hook.


	10. captain

Wendy spun around and pointed her sword at him. He wasn't as impeccably dressed as usual, wearing knee-high boots, black pants and a loose white shirt. The shirt showed the strap that went around his arm, holding his hook in place. His long black curls spilled loose over his shoulders. He looked... younger than she remembered him.

Even though she had planned everything out in her mind, Wendy was afraid. In the dim lamplight, Captain Hook's cold blue eyes and hook gleamed.

Recognition flickered across his face, followed by surprise. "Wendy?" he said, caught off-guard.

Although she first was startled, the island had been getting to her, making her braver, maybe a little reckless, so she held her head up. "Captain."

Hook tried to regain his composure and said, "My, my, you have grown up. How many years has it been on the mainland?"

"Quite a few," she said shortly.

"And, pray tell, what are you doing on my ship?"

"I am here to kill you," Wendy squared her jaw and looked him straight in the eye. "and then take over your ship."

"Really?" he said. A threat, that was something he knew how to deal with. He put his hook on her sword, which was still pointed at his chest, and pushed it aside with a little more difficulty than he had expected. "Hmm," he said, not impressed.

But Wendy was not about to give up and she stepped forward, resting the tip of her sword on his collarbone.

"Give me complete control of the ship and maybe I won't kill you," she said, raising her chin confidently.

Hook wanted to laugh, the idea that Wendy, even an adult Wendy, could take his ship from him was absurd. But there was this look on her face, this fire in her eyes that made him hesitate. He felt like she might be able to succeed by sheer force of will.

He had no sword at his side, and while his hook was an alright weapon, it did put Wendy at an advantage. His rapier lay on his desk, behind Wendy, and to get it, he would have to stall and distract.

"So, I'm assuming you all crept aboard the ship and quietly got rid of the men on watch. The boys took the forecastle, slicing the men's throats as they slept. Peter" He noticed Wendy tense slightly. "sent you here until he came to kill me." She was expressionless, but he continued, slowly moving to the left. Wendy kept her sword at his neck. "I know of his rule that none of his men, ahem, boys may kill me. Although," He was now almost close enough to grab his rapier. "perhaps he has given you that privilege. After all, he did care for you."

The past tense bothered her, although it shouldn't have. Wendy was torn between claiming to have the Lost Boys and Peter with her or distancing herself from them in pride.

Hook took advantage of her few moments of confusion and managed to lean around her and grab his own rapier.

Wendy, angry at herself for getting distracted, attacked immediately. But Hook was ready, and while Wendy's previous opponent was only her better in physical strength, not in swordplay and speed, the captain was better at both.

Soon her sword was twisted from her grasp by a clever wrist movement by Hook. His blade at her throat, she backed up until she hit the wall of the cabin. She looked up at the captain, trying not to let her fear show.

She tried to reach for her dagger and hunting knife but he noticed and pressed the tip of his sword harder against her neck. She quickly raised her hands above her shoulders and he pulled the knives from her belt, tossing them to the ground. Although he didn't take her pistol, she knew that she would never have time to use it. He had lowered his rapier, but his hook had taken its place against her neck, the cold metal against her skin.

"Well, where is your precious Peter now?" he asked.

She swallowed. "He isn't here."

"He isn't here?"

"No," she said. "I came by myself. I haven't seen him in years."

He looked genuinely confused but did not lower his guard.

"Don't really want to either, actually," Wendy muttered quietly, more to herself than anything. Then she shook her head, she shouldn't have said that out loud. He didn't need to know that. "So, Captain James Hook, are you going to kill me?"

"Well, I do have a reputation to keep up," he said, searching for any sign of her being afraid. Her voice had not shaken when she spoke, her hands were steady and she did not lean on the wall for support. Her chin was raised and her chocolate-brown eyes were clear of any fear. There was an elegance in her defiance, a beauty in the way she refused to stand down and cower.

Any fear that Wendy had felt before seemed to float away as she stood face to face with the man who had haunted her dreams as a child. The man who had been the bad guy in all her stories, and yet was so... entrancing? No, that wasn't the right word. It didn't matter anyway.

She waited for the tell-tale red spots that would appear in his eyes when he was about to kill someone. But they didn't come. Captain Hook didn't move and they stood there for a long moment, seemingly at a stalemate, both unsure of what to do.

Suddenly, the door of the captain's cabin opened and a pirate burst in. "Cap'n! Someone's on the ship!" he shouted. "We have to-" He stopped when he saw Captain Hook and Wendy. "Oh."

Hook cleared his throat. "As you see, I have caught the culprit."

"That's good, cap'n," said the pirate. "is she gonna walk the plank?"

"No!" he said, louder than he meant to. "I am holding her hostage to lure out Pan. Alert the crew."

"Yes, sir." And with that, he hurried out, closing the door behind him.

Suddenly very aware of how close he and Wendy stood to each other, Hook stepped away and sat at the edge of his desk. Wendy breathed out slowly, looking around the room.

"You do realize that Peter doesn't give a damn about me, right?" she said, looking back at him. "Especially not now."

"Because you grew up?"

Wendy shrugged.

His brow creased as he nodded.

"And that is why I am completely done with him." She turned and looked out the window at the back of the cabin. "I didn't come back here for him." There was a moment of silence after that, and Wendy realized what that had sounded like and winced internally.

"What did you come back here for?" his voice was quiet, almost cautious.

"Adventure," she said quickly, turning back toward him. "life on the mainland is boring. My parents wanted me to find a respectable job, to settle down. My brothers have completely forgotten this place." She shook her head. "I can still hardly believe that they could."

"How did you return?" He stood up from his desk and pulled out a chair for her, taking one for himself and setting it across from hers.

After a moment of hesitation, Wendy sat down. For some reason, she felt that she could trust him, which was ridiculous, but she sat anyway. He was acting very differently than he had before, on her last trip to Neverland, where he had threatened to kill her brothers and the Lost Boys. It didn't even seem like the same man.

His tone, expression and body language told Wendy that he didn't want to hurt her. He was relaxed in his chair and seem genuinely interested in what she had to say. But he had always been charming. Cruel and murderous perhaps, but always with the utmost possible charm and manners. And his rapier lay across his knees, ready to be grabbed at a second's notice.

So, while Wendy sat down, she slipped her hand into her pocket. As she told Captain Hook about her search for a way to return, she worked to pistol out of the plastic bag. When she told him about the feeling of flying again, a faint smile actually spread over his face, softening his features. She almost fell for it, but then remembered the murderous, red glint in his eyes from last time. She cleared her throat loudly to hide the click of the safety.

She hurried through the rest of the story, omitting her little house, and its location, and Blue. When she was finished, there was a moment of silence.

Quickly, she kicked Hook's rapier from his lap and pulled out her pistol, pointing it at his face as she stood up. He didn't move, and his eyes were not fixed on the barrel of the pistol, but on her own. There was something in his pale blue eyes that she had never seen them express before.

Betrayal.

Suppressing her sudden feeling of guilt, Wendy quickly turned and fled from the cabin, stuffing the pistol back into its plastic bag as she did so. There were a few men on deck, but they were stunned at her sudden appearance. Without hesitating, Wendy leapt overboard, pistol-carrying bag in hand. She hit the water not very gracefully and, on surfacing, quickly oriented herself and swam toward the island.

There was unintelligible shouting on the ship, silenced by Hook's roar of "Quiet!" then, in a normal voice, he said, "Let her go."

Exhausted and dripping wet, Wendy stumbled up the beach. Blue bounded out from the bushes, asking her how it had gone with his eyes. Wendy shook her head. "It didn't work."

He pushed at her side with his nose, trying to get her to stand up. She got to her feet, shoving her pistol into her pocket. Looking back at the ship as she slipped into the forest, the last thing she saw was the glint of the moon on a spyglass.


	11. peter

"Let her go."

Since Tiger Lily had first seen Wendy back on the island, she had someone watching her silently at all times. If she wasn't busy, she would sometimes do it herself. It had gotten more difficult when Blue joined Wendy, and they had to watch her from more of a distance and always downwind.

Kitchi had been on watch when Wendy went to the Jolly Roger and had sprinted back to tell Tiger Lily of the new development. They got back in time to see her push a pirate overboard.

With Hook's words after Wendy's escape, Tiger Lily knew. She knew that if she ever had any problems with Hook and his men, she needed Wendy on her side. Wendy had been on his ship long enough for him to kill her, and he hadn't.

Before Wendy reached the shore, Tiger Lily and Kitchi had disappeared again, returning to their camp.

Wendy was furious with herself. Her few seconds of distraction had completely ruined her plan.

And the distraction had been about Peter. She made a face. Now, she also had no weapons other than the pistol, she didn't even have her hunting knife anymore.

She picked up a stick and started slashing at the underbrush around her in frustration. She had hacked through quite a few plants when she suddenly stopped herself.

What was she doing? She was acting like a child. Shaking her head, she tossed down the stick. This island was getting to her head, making her act like she used to when she was younger.

Peter floated lazily through the air over Mermaid Lagoon. The Lost Boys were scouring the island, looking for whoever was new. Although Peter was not often serious, he did always insist on knowing who was on the island. This was the first time in a long time that someone had arrived who was not with him, and he didn't like it.

Wendy made her way along the side of the mountains that were in the centre of the island, Blue at her heels. The side of the mountains was riddled with small caves and boulders. She had made herself a new bow, although it wasn't as nice as her old one, and she had an arrow at the ready.

They neared the edge of the forest, where the earth gave way to smooth rocks that sloped down towards the water. Crouching in the bushes, Wendy saw that the surface was like glass, hardly a ripple. The mermaids weren't out today.

She almost stepped out, but Blue kept her back, pointing his nose up. There, high above the lagoon was Peter Pan, flying slowly on his back. Wendy froze, but she didn't think he had heard her. He kept flying in slow circles over the water.

Trying not to make a sound, Wendy inched back from the edge of the forest, her heart pounding. She heard a strange, bell-like noise from behind her and quickly spun around. Hovering not too far from her face was a bright ball of light. When Wendy looked carefully, she could see a small figure that was emitting the light.

"Tinker Bell!" she gasped, then slapped her hand over her mouth.

The fairy seemed to scrutinize her for a second, then suddenly called out in her ringing bell language that Wendy had never really learned.

She was probably calling out to Peter, Wendy realized, and she and Blue took off deeper into the forest. As she ran, Wendy couldn't help but wonder why her heart was racing and why she was running as fast as her legs could carry her. Surely, she wasn't afraid of him!

Reaching the base of the mountains again, Wendy saw a cave, only a little ways up the slope. Thank goodness!

Blue had seen it too and they scrambled over the rocks and into the dark cavity.

"Who is it, Tink?" Peter called, coming closer.

Wendy and Blue crept to the very back of the cave and ducked behind a large boulder. Wendy peeked out from above the boulder and saw Peter hover for a moment in front of the cave, looking out at the forest. When he turned to the right, she saw that he hadn't aged a day, he still looked exactly the same as he had when she had last seen him years ago. Well, years ago according to the mainland time. Hook hadn't aged either, in fact, he almost seemed younger.

She held her breath as he stayed in his place too long in her opinion. Had he heard them? He looked directly into the cave and Wendy quickly ducked behind the boulder again. Suddenly, she noticed that she had an arrow at the ready, notched without her noticing she had done it. Shaking her head, she leant back against the rock. She was being foolish. Peter would never hurt her.

"Was it the grown-up, Tink?" Peter asked.

Tinker Bell replied.

"Who is it?"

Again, the tinkling of bells responded.

"A woman? But the mermaids said there was something strange about her." His voice began to fade away as he flew farther. "Was there anything strange about her?"

Wendy didn't hear Tinker Bell's reply, but she wouldn't have been able to understand it anyway. After being certain that they were gone, she carefully crept from the cave with Blue, who was looking at her curiously.

"What?" she asked him, crouching down to look him in the eyes.

He pointed his head in the direction Peter had flown in.

"Yes, that was Peter Pan. What about him?"

Blue raised his eyebrows.

She sighed. "Yes, I liked him when I was younger, maybe even loved him. Then he forgot about me and now I'm grown up and he's still a foolish boy." Wendy stood up. "And I'm over him."

When Blue didn't move, Wendy glanced back and saw that he looked sceptical. "Really, I'm over him. Let's go."

He barked questioningly.

"We're going to see Tiger Lily," said Wendy, suddenly knowing what to do. "I can't take over the Jolly Roger by myself and I'm sure the Piccaninny tribe has no love for the pirates."


	12. insight

As Wendy approached the camp, she became less sure of her plan. She had her bow and quiver of arrows on her back and was starting to think she should have left them behind. She didn't want them to perceive her as a threat.

The members of the tribe watched her carefully as she walked into the small village of wigwams. Even though they regarded her suspiciously, they did not seem threatened by her presence.

A woman came up to her, wearing a deerskin robe, skirt and leggings. "Are you hungry? Come, we have some food on the fire."

Wendy hesitated, then remembered that this was often the greeting that was given to guests. Was she a guest then? She followed the woman to the fire, where some meat was being smoked.

She sat down on the ground and was given some cooked meat. She wasn't sure what it was, but it was really good. Blue was given some meat as well and seemed to be enjoying it just as much. Whatever it was, it was better than the few birds Wendy and he had managed to get.

"Thank you," she said. As she ate, everyone around her went back to what they had been doing before. A few children laughed and ran around. Wendy couldn't help but wonder whether they would grow older, or if it was just Peter and the boys who didn't age. But what about Hook?

Suddenly, everyone stopped working again. Wendy looked up and followed their gaze to the entrance of the largest wigwam.

There, her head held high with a proud glint in her eyes, looking as regal as any king or queen, stood Tiger Lily. Wendy wasn't sure whether she should rise or bow. She put down her food and knelt, bowing her head. Blue did the same beside her.

Looking up again, she saw Tiger Lily coming towards her. She wore an intricately beaded coat, skirt and leggings and a colourful wampum belt at her waist. Wendy noticed her incorporation of female clothing with the traditional chief's clothing. Her father must have died in the time she had been gone.

Tiger Lily gestured for Wendy to rise and she stood up slowly.

Trying to remember the proper etiquette, Wendy said, "Chief Tiger Lily, I have come with a gift and hope to discuss a possible alliance between myself and your tribe."

Nodding, Tiger Lily gestured for Wendy to come with her into the wigwam she had just come out of. Wendy followed her and they sat down across from each other inside, the small fire between them. Blue sat down beside Wendy, and Tiger Lily looked at her expectantly.

"Oh, yes, the gift," Wendy exclaimed, and drew the pistol from her pocket, holding it out on her flat hand. It seemed the best thing for a gift, after all, she didn't have much else. But it was her only good weapon, so Wendy sincerely hoped that she would come out of this with an ally. "I took it from one of Hook's men."

"I know," said Tiger Lily, speaking for the first time as she took the pistol. She looked at it from all angles, checking the powder and how many shots were left with some experience. "Three shots," she murmured.

"How do you know?"

"That there are three shots?"

"No, how do you know that I took it from a pirate?"

She shifted her gaze from the pistol to Wendy. "You don't think that I would have a new player on the island without having someone watch them, do you? I know that Peter and his boys are searching the island for you, but they don't know it's you. I know that Hook is moving his ship towards Mermaid Lagoon as we speak. I always know who is where."

Wendy nodded. She should have known. "I am sorry about your father," she said quietly.

"He is in a better place now," Tiger Lily put the pistol down beside her. "And he prepared me well for my role."

"I can see that."

"Now, you came here to discuss an alliance," Tiger Lily shifted over to grab a map of the island that had been drawn on a piece of what looked like deerskin.

"Yes, I have not allied myself with anyone yet, other than Blue here," Wendy said, nodding towards the wolf that sat alert beside her.

"I think that an alliance would benefit us both greatly," Tiger Lily said. "I had been thinking about paying you a visit to discuss the subject for a little while now."

"Really?" Wendy was surprised at how easy that was.

Tiger Lily nodded. "I have my tribe, my braves, and you have a connection with Hook and knowledge of his ship."

Wendy first smiled, but it faded slightly. "Wait, a connection with Hook?"

"He could have killed you, and yet he didn't. He stopped his men from coming after you when you jumped off his ship. He has no men scouring the island to find you, as he would do with anyone else. He has even instructed them not to hurt you if they do come across you," she explained calmly. "You are some kind of weakness for him, and with you on our side, we can exploit that weakness."

Wendy had some difficulty understanding what she was being told. She didn't for a moment doubt that what Tiger Lily was telling her was true, she knew the most of what was happening on the island, only second to the mermaids.

But she Hook's weakness? At any other time, Wendy would have laughed this off, but he had let her go. And she had noticed that there were no pirates bothering her anymore, while before they had been combing the island.

Blue seemed to notice her confusion and nuzzled her arm with his nose, laying his head down on her lap.

"I am terribly sorry, but I think I'll need to think about this a little longer," Wendy said, standing up quickly, Blue following her lead.

"What?" Tiger Lily rose, puzzled by Wendy's sudden change of mind.

"I am sorry, and I hope I haven't offended you or anything." She started for the door. "It really was nice seeing you again, you're a great leader." Wendy quickly left the wigwam and hurried through the village, people watching her and Blue as they made their way to the forest.

Wendy drew her fingers through her short hair, not even sure herself why she had just done that. What was she thinking, throwing away a perfectly good alliance like that? And because of Hook? She was being ridiculous.

The captain was a bloodthirsty, cruel pirate who ruled with an iron hook. Literally. She had said it herself numerous times in her stories, he was the only man that the Sea Cook had ever feared. He was the bad guy.

But he had let her go.

The thought nagged in the back of her mind as she tramped through the forest, not really going anywhere specific. Blue followed her faithfully, looking up at her worriedly every now and then, a sort of sympathetic light in his eyes.

Wendy found herself at the edge of Mermaid's Lagoon without even realizing that that was where she was going. The water was no longer calm, and it rippled and splashed as the mermaids swam around, laughing and chatting together.

 _Are mermaids not sweet?_

 _They'll sweetly drown you if you get too close._

She took off her shoes and tossed them with her bow and arrows back into the bushes, getting ready to go in the water. If anyone knew about this so-called connection between her and Hook, it was them. Just as she stepped into the water, Blue let out a high-pitched whine.

"What is it, boy?" she asked, looking back at him.

Blue nodded his head towards the mermaids and then shook his head fervently. _You can't trust them_ , he seemed to say.

"I know, but I need to ask someone," Wendy said. "Why don't you help me by making sure that Peter isn't anywhere near and distracting him if you can."

Although Blue turned and went back into the trees, Wendy could tell that he wasn't happy about her plan. But she really had no other choice.

After wading in up to her waist, Wendy swam to the nearest unoccupied rock and pulled herself up on it. This caught the mermaids' attention, and they slipped into the water, coming towards her.

A mermaid with red hair came up first and looked at Wendy curiously. Soon, all the mermaids had gathered around her.

"So, Wendy Moira Angela Darling has finally come to pay us a visit," said a mermaid with hair so blonde it was almost white.

Wendy didn't question how they knew her whole name and asked. "Is there a connection between me and Hook?"

The mermaids all looked at each other knowingly and smiled. "Yes," said another mermaid. "there is something of a connection between you and the captain."

"What is it?"

"That is not for us to tell," said the red-head.

"Oh, come on, please?" Wendy begged. "I need to know."

"When you need to know, you will find out," said the blonde mermaid simply.

Wendy began to grow impatient. "But I want to know now. Tell me." It came out harsher than she had meant, so she added a soft, "Please?"

The expressions of the mermaids changed in an instant from mysterious smiles and twinkling silver eyes to something much more sinister. Wendy had gone too far.

They began grabbing at her arms and legs, trying to drag her under the water. Wendy struggled, refusing to let them get her.

"Let go!" she shouted, completely forgetting that she didn't want anyone to know where she was. "Let me go! I'm sorry! Please, let me go!"


	13. sacrifice

p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="e4b5d284c59e329d0f4fa87616917a7e"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" /emem style="box-sizing: border-box;"We are on the rock, Wendy, but it is growing smaller, soon the water will be over it./em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="3c89ad7d6d2a42cbb9e0146e58fa6940"Wendy groaned and moved slightly, but there was something restraining her arms and legs./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="5686c8cc9905f7ef5510e8ed18908c54"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" We must go./em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="000a022d855e3415550f18d884e57742"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" Yes./em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="05f46e592723e08d5e6650c9ee581c5c"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" Shall we swim or fly, Peter?/em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="fc5e2b4eeef03f58727dc5b4a5629f24"Her head throbbed and colours swam before her eyes when she opened them./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="a45230c70278f5474a38499e2ffc77d8"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" Do you think that you could swim or fly as far as the island, Wendy, without my help?/em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="9e2b982389574b563832f536d7285505"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" I am rather tired./em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="cf6cb890b0710da50fc15633f40868d7"She was tired. Where was she? The rock. Peter had just told her. Wendy tried to clear her vision. Peter wasn't there./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="f9c469eb1d253d13881ad2e5f2c3e6d1"But she could hear him, he just moaned, he's in pain./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="ab4a424afa41ba8534caf187c8aea1e7"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" What is it?/em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="5c9e508986470eacd2602370a9ac141a"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" I can't help you, Wendy, I can neither fly nor swim./em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="127269d59bdf710fef7da682dffd1402"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" Do you mean we shall both be drowned?/em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="3605996d4d59144eef302cef25ebae76"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" Look how the water is rising./em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="27188682b58f1f954fa43710a68930e3"The water was rising, Wendy could feel it at her ankles. She managed to get the coloured spots out of her eyes and blearily looked around. It was getting dark over the lagoon, and the mermaids were gone, leaving the surface smooth./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="e2defb205252acb8f99d04aa9d3db805"Working her way up to a sitting position, she noticed that her arms and ankles were tied with what looked like seaweed. Her arms were tied behind her back and the seaweed reached high enough up her arms that she couldn't slip them in front of her. Those mermaids sure had done a thorough job./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="448057d351db64cadb491d9b7f5f534b"The Jolly Roger lay anchored at the mouth of the bay that formed the lagoon. Tiger Lily had been right, as she always was./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="2f0ff2ea74a814f8545799949d58e3a0"Wendy thought about the memory that had surfaced as she regained consciousness. It had been about the last time she was on this rock. The first time that Peter had been truly selfless./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="6353ad7ef53674e253914785160fbe50"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" Michael's kite, it lifted Michael off the ground, why should it not carry you?/em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="ff199636349a9ecfc7f73c7659c7b455"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" Both of us!/em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="a6274ffa7821950362b740e8264d67ea"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" It can't lift two; Michael and Curly tried./em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="7fd1b893e450688ab48a3a044dc49f45"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" Let us draw lots./em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="4898ea3f31636f245b5014ed31c636eb"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" And you a lady; never./em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="5b9038bd3c62f587834a057112f0ae7b"For all his faults, Peter could be perfectly chivalrous at times. He had tied the tail around her and tried to push her off the rock. Wendy had held on to him, refusing to leave him behind to drown, but he was stronger than her and pushed her off./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="ae648b278d822c48678fd6f0a90c87d6"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" Goodbye, Wendy./em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="bbb93dbdc3255853791ba722f62a72fd"em style="box-sizing: border-box;" No, Peter!/em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="b46531e086fc72ba60b29f264c630c38"She had tried to go back, but there was no point. She floated steadily away as the moon rose over the lagoon, and she could see that the rock was very small now./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="6e103c154ae517886a79a66f771af25b"With the mermaids' melancholy song to the moon floating over the water, Wendy had seen Peter stand up and straighten his back. He squared his shoulders and raised his chin, facing the horizon with a smile on his face. She had first thought it was the dim light playing tricks on her eyes, but it wasn't. Even in the face of death, Peter Pan was grinning and not about to back down./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="73115ada881ac89acdc6e3b0a9032c93"Wendy shook her head, pushing the memory away. However brave and selfless Peter had been on that night, he was no longer. Not for her./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="78bbb5399928f328c265ad1e0a879794"And besides, there was no point dwelling on memories, especially not right now. She had to get off this rock before the water covered it and her and she drowned./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="78c3cf59b0b55ae3eb75abf559c31e89"She searched the lagoon around her, trying to find anything that could possibly help her. Movement out towards the ocean caught her eye and she squinted in the fading light. The Jolly Roger lay out at the mouth of the lagoon./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="76f9e652004d4ba098a8db2590fc2bd0"Captain Hook had never really liked the mermaids. With the Jolly Roger and his crew, he liked to think that he was the ruler over the water around Neverland, but the truth was that the mermaids were more powerful than him. They always knew what was happening, even what was going to happen sometimes./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="4e5676581d021bfe3bcbc8d9dab2c764"As he glanced around the lagoon, he saw a figure laying on Marooner's Rock. He quickly looked through his spy-glass and growled when he saw that it was Wendy, bound and unconscious. Those damn mermaids!/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="ae85562c5b9a391b910917af23c9c417"Putting the spy-glass back in his coat pocket, he stormed down the quarterdeck steps. "Lower a long-boat!"/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="9245fb3976bfd7eb48d0fc1c9f9fb884"Pirates scrambled about and Starkey came up to him. "Orders, cap'n?"/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="9d2baaf65a7893d861b7353134fee40c""I shall go in the long-boat alone, you take command until I get back. Anchor around the bend."/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="bf05b4eb4eb59dc61678a81fb5cd02bc"Starkey seemed surprised at his orders but didn't comment on them. "Yes, cap'n," he said as he went up to the quarterdeck and took the wheel./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="99de25eacc04f217f4a13cbbbf91b8af"In the long-boat, Hook rowed towards the rock, still not quite sure himself why he was doing this. Maybe she wasn't with Pan now, but she was last time. It was partly her fault that he had fallen to the crocodile, a fate he had very narrowly escaped. She had loved Pan!/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="53900debaf2ce32a850c8f3cebb2a505"But she didn't anymore, he reminded himself. She had said that herself./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="fe388a888f3689cf3e136200631e40e4"What did it matter who she cared for anyway? Hook shook his head, then looked back at the rock again. Wendy was sitting up now and was looking around in the dim light of the sunset./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="576721d001c8da641d10477dd7318f1c"The rock was completely covered now, but it was only a few centimetres under the water. Wendy had been trying to stay calm, but she couldn't see any way out of this./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="d8caa59746708d376e1726ed7368dd21"As she glanced around quickly in desperation, she saw a boat approaching, coming from the Jolly Roger. The oars made quiet splashes in the water/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="d993eb094ebc9b94c432282268167b70"Had Hook sent someone to get her? Did he want her as a hostage to lure out Peter? At least that way she wouldn't drown./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="7761d44844fcd00c7d3846344c5a7812"The boat approached and Wendy saw that it was only one person in the boat. She recognized that it was Hook from his hat./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="e23fe6a4069e0ac58bb72f3a2c2e8a30"Suddenly, there was commotion on the ship and Hook stopped rowing. Men shouted and there was the sound of steel clashing against steel. A few gunshots echoed in the quiet night. Tinker Bell and Peter Pan flitted around the ship, illuminating the rigging and casting shadows on the sails./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="e71296b12cbcbdde707a1ebb072fbc60"The water was approaching her waist and Wendy tried to stand up but had some difficulty with her tied arms and legs. She was afraid that if she tried to stand up she would lose her balance and fall off the rock, and drown even faster./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="88a40dfc81d6d7328e6ca8582b9869cc"Hook's boat sat motionless in the water, and he turned back to look at her, then back at his ship. Was he seriously debating coming to get her instead of going back to kill Peter? Wendy shook her head. Hook would never give up the chance to kill his nemesis./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="718e617954bc2225387428d42f2e5f1d"And yet, he did not turn around but kept rowing in her direction. The boat moved smoothly and quickly through the water towards her. The water seemed to be rising faster now, going up her chest and getting close to her shoulders./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="04cd16a1560d409e4b7faba4ca0147b5"She could see Hook clearly now, could see him straining as he rowed as quickly as he could. He was dressed as he usually was, with his red coat contrasting immensely with his black curls and his hat with the ridiculously large feather on it./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="e2c54815b86173079e012d649abda2f9"He looked back as he approached her, and Wendy saw the worry in his eyes when he saw how high the water had risen. Wendy held her chin above the water as it slowly crept up her neck and tried not to look terrified./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="baea2b28a7b91c22af2c9d82ca46f446"The boat came beside her and Hook held out his hands. "Take my hand, quickly."/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="6174c7ad7b45cc7af8afee791a14b5d5"Straining to keep her mouth above the water, Wendy said, "My hands are tied, don't you think I would've swum to shore otherwise?"/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="a76e002f57feafdab7fd93332f6e3ad3"Without hesitation, Hook jumped out of the boat with a splash and hastily grabbed Wendy by the arms, pulling her to her feet. He stepped around her and quickly cut the bonds tying her arms together. Trying to control her breathing and so grateful at being saved, she turned and leaned against him, her face buried in his coat./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="829ce4beed7ef7e195285e6d55ee10df""Thank you," she murmured into his wool overcoat./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="d0646081689871222c1f76bbf764df3c"Hook didn't say anything, just lifted her into the boat like she weighed nothing and climbed in after her. By the time he was settled and had adjusted the oars, Wendy had untied her legs and calmed herself down./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="0b5584a5528a1625a983cab418eeaa62"The commotion on the Jolly Roger was still going on and Hook was just starting to turn the boat around when a cheer rose from the ship. It was not the cheer of men, but of boys. Hook hesitated, looking at the ship and then at Wendy./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="f1580847346a834a1492b910c9247039""They've taken the ship," he said, as though he could hardly believe it./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="3bac4a6cc7bc1762d7aa2567ec4f92cd"Several splashes were suddenly heard over the water./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="802aeb7840288b86b169e5b5952142f0""Did they just jump overboard?" asked Wendy./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="2fa7970511a9967836f37e1776a9d7aa"Hook frowned. "We need to regroup, take the ship back. They're heading for shore."/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="35d3cd0ef20975bb2496e754b5980208"He turned the boat so that they were headed to land and as he rowed, Wendy realized how much of a sacrifice he had made. He had saved her instead of defending his ship and taking out his revenge on Peter. She glanced behind her at his back. Perhaps she had misjudged him, perhaps he had changed since she was last here./p 


	14. trust

The forest was not quiet at night, there was the constant sound of birds, animals in the underbrush and the singing of numerous different insects. Wendy didn't know where they were going, they were headed to the centre of the island, or even why she was following him. Hook said nothing, tramping ahead of her through the trees, slashing vines and branches out of the way with his sword.

"Hey, Captain," Wendy said, quickening her pace so she walked beside him. "could I have a sword or a dagger or something?"

Hook didn't turn his head. "And why would I give you a weapon? The last time you saw me, you threatened to kill me."

"Yeah, but you just saved my life. You don't really think I would kill you now, do you?"

Turning to her, Hook raised his eyebrows.

"I do have some sense of honour," Wendy said, taken slightly aback.

He said nothing, looking ahead again. They continued and soon reached the base of the mountains. Hook began to pick his way up the rocky slope, Wendy following not too far behind.

"Where are we going?" she asked.

"We're regrouping."

"That isn't helpful information."

"We have a cave hideout for just such an occasion."

"If I'm going to be stuck in a cave with a group of pirates, I would like to have some way to defend myself."

Hook stopped and looked back at her. "Alright," he said, taking a blade from his belt and handing it to her. "There."

"Why were you carrying my hunting knife?" she asked, slipping it into her own belt. "It's not exactly a great weapon."

"Here we are," he said quickly at the entrance of a cave that looked like all the other ones they had passed on the way up.

Wendy took her hunting knife from her belt as they entered the cave. She could hardly see anything in the darkness and stayed close behind Hook. Ahead she saw the flickering light of a flame and they came upon a torch fixed to the wall. There, the cave split into two identical passages.

Without hesitating, Hook went through the one of the left. _Alright, left_ , Wendy thought. _I need to remember this._

There was some faint light ahead and soon they came to a large opening in the cave wall. Looking down, Wendy saw a large chamber, dimly lit by torches dispersed around it. Obviously, a lot of time and effort had been put into this hideout. On the far left, hammocks were strung. There were larger tables for meals and small ones for card games and such. There was a stove that seemed to be completely carved from stone. A pool fed by a spring was in the middle of the cave and there was a pen of chickens, goats, sheep and even a few cows at the far end. Beside that were large pots with vegetable plants growing in them. Wendy noted that they were specifically vegetables that didn't need a lot of light.

She stared in wonder at the entire cave and caught Hook watching her reaction. "This is amazing!" she exclaimed, catching Hook's expression of pride as she continued. "How long have you been working on it?"

He shrugged and looked out at the chamber again. "You know what time is like here, but quite a while."

A few pirates had noticed them and looked up curiously. Steps to the right of where they were standing led down to the floor and Wendy gripped her hunting knife tightly as she followed Hook down the steps.

He ignored the men and went straight to a wooden door in the wall. Hook held it open for her and Wendy stepped inside.

For a moment, Wendy forgot that she was underground and she looked around the room in wonder. It was such a combination of different colours and styles from different places and times. A tapestry from the Middle Ages hung on the wall flanked on both sides by beautiful Arabian-looking pieces of cloth. A cabinet made of black wood with red accents reminded her of Chinese interior design. A few carved and painted wooden masks looked like those made by certain African tribes hung on the wall as well. Some things seemed almost too modern for him to have, like the dining table and matching chairs that looked very American Colonial. But, as Hook had said, time was strange here.

"Please, sit down," Hook said, pulling out a chair. "I assume you wouldn't like rum, but I do have-"

"No," Wendy interrupted, sitting down. "Rum would be nice."

He looked at her strangely.

"It's been a crazy day."

He nodded and poured them both a glass.

"So, where did you get all these things?" Wendy asked.

"Travel, trade, taking over merchant ships." Hook said casually, as though these three things belonged together.

Wendy frowned. "Do you go back to the mainland, then?"

Hook shook his head. "We go to the other islands."

She sat up straight, almost spilling her drink. "There are other islands?"

"Yes," he said. "beautiful places, better than anywhere on the mainland." He paused for a moment, as though thinking very hard about what he was about to say. "I could take you to see them if you'd like."

"Yes, please," Wendy exclaimed, before thinking better of it. "Wait... uh, I'll have to think about it."

A small smile played at the corners of Hook's mouth as he took another sip. "While you do that, you can stay here, I will sleep with the men. There is some clothing in the chests," he continued, gesturing towards the pile stacked up at one end of the room. "see if any of it fits you." He stood up, setting his empty glass on the table. "I bid you goodnight, milady, and if you need anything, do not hesitate to wake me." He was almost out the door when he turned back to her. "Oh, and make sure you bar the door."

"Don't worry, I was planning on doing that," Wendy said, standing up. "Goodnight, captain." She gave him a slight curtsey and he responded with a quick bow before he closed the door behind him.

As Wendy got up to bar the door, a strange fluttery feeling made her pause. She shook her head, she was being foolish.

"He's a pirate, Wendy," she reminded herself. "you can't trust him."

But she knew that, without intending to, she already did.

Hey everyone! Sorry, it's been a while since I published a new chapter. I just started university and am currently adjusting to the new environment.

Anyway, hoped y'all liked this chapter, and I'll try to publish regularly from now on.

Love you all!

\- aclmohle


	15. threshold

Hook lay in his hammock, eyes open, staring at the rocky ceiling high above him, listening to the snores of his men. It was strangely quiet here, and he missed the familiar creaking of his ship and the sound of the sea. He also missed his comfortable bed, but he supposed that letting Wendy have it was the most gentlemanly thing to do.

Two of his men returned from their watch and woke the next two for their turn. Hook rolled over in his hammock carefully and faced the door of his cabin. Even though he knew that Wendy had barred the door, he was still uncomfortable with her being so within reach of his men. They were good sailors and obeyed him, but they were still pirates.

Wendy awoke to muffled chatter. She sat bolt-upright, taking in her surroundings in slight confusion until she remembered the events of last night. She was in the pirates' cave hideout, in Hook's cabin. She had almost drowned. Hook had saved her instead of going back to his ship.

It struck her again what a sacrifice that had been. His actions had basically said that she was more important than his revenge on Peter Pan. Wendy wasn't sure what to make of it.

She slipped out of the bed, still wearing her camouflage pants and the green t-shirt. Hook had said that there was clothing in the chests and she carefully opened the first one, rifling through the contents. It was filled with luxurious, patterned cloth, in vibrant colours, royal blue, crimson, deep purple and dark green. The next chest was full of weapons of all kinds, straight and curved daggers, swords, scimitars, crossbows, pistols and many others. Wendy selected a dagger and an Italian rapier to put aside and moved on to the next chest. This one contained what she had been looking for: brown and blue breeches, light shirts, coats, vests and belts.

After pulling on a pair of dark blue breeches and a white shirt, Wendy grabbed a belt that went over her shoulder and around her waist for her blades. The boots at the bottom of the chest were much too big for her, so she decided to stick with her own shoes.

Looking in the large, ornamented mirror in the corner, Wendy couldn't help but grin. She looked like a proper pirate in this getup, and she kind of liked it. It was this confidence that helped her step out the door of the safe bedroom.

It was fairly light in the cave, but it was not coming from torches or fire. It had a green tinge to it. Wendy looked up and saw that there was a large opening in the ceiling that she had not seen before and that was covered in leaves.

The pirates had taken notice of her and were watching her out of the corner of their eyes. Some of them were working around the cave, at the pots of plants, or hauling water from the pond. Two stood guard at the top of the steps, facing the cave that led outside. The rest of the pirates sat around, playing cards or talking.

Hook, who had been sitting at a table in the corner poring over a map, saw her and quickly made his way to her.

"I trust you slept well," he said, offering her an arm.

Wendy was reminded of the last time he had done so. It was right when she, her brothers and the lost boys were intending to leave Neverland. They had climbed out of the Home in the Ground after saying their goodbyes to Peter without realizing that the pirates had found their hiding place. She had been the last to leave, and all the other boys had been tied up by the time she had emerged. With ironic politeness, Hook had raised his hat to her and offered her his arm as he escorted her to where the boys had been tied up and gagged.

She shook the memory away as she took Hook's arm. He wasn't going to hurt her, she knew that for certain.

"I did sleep well, thank you."

They sat down at the table where a map lay amidst measuring instruments a few plates of bread and cheese, and a bottle of what Wendy assumed was rum.

"Help yourself," Hook said, gesturing to the plates of food.

As Wendy ate, she studied the map. In the centre was the island of Neverland, with Cannibal Cove and Mermaid Lagoon, but surrounding it were many other islands, varying in size. Most were labelled, but many were not. Strionia, Egrain, Oshos, Baproyye, and many others.

This world was so much larger than Wendy knew. The island of Neverland was just one of many that weren't part of the mainland. She couldn't quite wrap her head around how exactly they existed, whether they were on earth, just undiscovered in the Atlantic Ocean, or on another world completely. Come to think of it, she had never really thought about where Neverland was either. She knew that the only way to get here was to fly.

She looked up at Hook to find him watching her. He quickly took a swig of rum and looked back down at the map.

"How did you get to Neverland?" Wendy asked, suddenly.

"Hmm?" Hook looked up, eyebrows raised.

"I mean, I know that you went to Eaton and that you were Blackbeard's bo'sun, so you've been on the mainland. I also know that the only way to get here is to fly, and as far as I know, I'm the only adult that can fly."

He leaned back in his chair, looking at her with such an intense gaze that Wendy almost regretted asking him.

"I was indeed Captain Teach's, or as you say, Blackbeard's, bo'sun. After we captured a Spanish ship, he made me captain of it, but still under his command. He received a percentage of all we captured." He paused, remembering. "There was a terrible storm and we were separated. When the winds died down, we had no idea where we were, the stars were different, the days were either too long or too short. Time seemed to be of no consequence."

"You ended up here."

Hook nodded. "We found this place… world, if you will, to be very fruitful for our pirating endeavours. It was quite a while before we even found this island and met Pan."

He noticed Wendy tense again at the name and had to ask. "What happened to you two?"

"I told you, I grew up. He didn't."

His eyebrows raised again.

Wendy pursed her lips. "No, you don't get any more information than that."

"I just told you how I got here," Hook said, taken aback.

"And I told you how I got here last time." Wendy got up quickly, looking around. "So, where's the bathroom around here?"

Later that day, there was some commotion in the passage leading to the cave. Steps echoed and pirates shouted. Wendy, who had been aimlessly wandering around the cave, unsheathed her rapier and took a defensive stance.

She glanced over at the table where Hook stood, sword in his one hand, pistol in the other, he looked over at her and their gazes met. He jerked his head towards the door to the captain's cabin. Wendy rolled her eyes and shook her head. She could handle herself, she didn't need to hide out behind a locked door like some defenceless-

That thought was interrupted when a wolf sprang from the entrance and landed down on the floor.

"Blue!" Wendy exclaimed, rushing forward and sheathing her blade as she did so. "Hey, boy." She dropped to her knees and embraced him.

Hook approached them and Blue spun around, growling at him. The pirate captain backed up a couple steps.

"You have a pet wolf?" he asked Wendy, in a tone that asked her why she had not mentioned this before.

Wendy nodded and quickly sat beside Blue. "Hey, Blue," she said soothingly. "It's okay, he's not going to hurt me, or you." She looked pointedly at Hook, who sighed, but nodded. Blue's muscles relaxed and he licked Wendy's face couple times, making her laugh. "Yeah, I'm happy to see you too."

 _Hey, everyone! As promised, here's the next chapter._

 _Hope y'all liked it!_

 _\- aclmohle_


	16. choices

Hook was reluctant to let her go, especially now that her pet wolf had come. But she was dying to go outside and he knew that she would never trust him if he didn't trust her.

So, she could leave, as long as he accompanied her.

Wendy breathed in deeply as she, Blue, and Hook left the cave, filling her lungs with the fresh air. Even though she had only been in the cave for a day and a half, she needed to get outside.

She also needed to get away from the prying eyes of the crew. Hook had probably told them who she was, although she wasn't completely sure. Either way, they recognized her as the one who had killed one of their men.

They were going to scout out the ship, see if they had anyone on guard and how many. Blue stayed close to Wendy's side as they moved through the forest as quietly as they could. He didn't trust Hook yet, and Wendy didn't really blame him.

Suddenly an arrow whizzed through the air and embedded itself in the ground between Hook's feet. His sword was out in a flash, but Wendy gestured for him to stand down. She recognized the arrow as belonging to the Piccaninny tribe.

"Wait!" she cried, stepping forward, in front of Hook. "I know your chief is having you protect me, but I'm not in danger."

To her surprise, it was Tiger Lily herself who stepped out into the open, arrow notched and aimed straight at Hook's chest.

"My braves lost you two nights ago. We feared the worst," she said.

Hook looked between Wendy and Tiger Lily with some bewilderment.

"I'm not in danger," Wendy repeated calmly. "Hook saved my life."

Surprise etched Tiger Lily's face, but she kept her arrow trained on the pirate captain.

"Could I speak with you alone, Tiger Lily?"

The captain, who hadn't moved much throughout this exchange, now stepped forward and grabbed Wendy's arm. "What are you doing?" he said quietly.

"Getting you some allies," she whispered back.

"I don't trust her."

"Well, I do."

He frowned, but let her go. Wendy and Tiger Lily moved a little ways away, just out of earshot. The chief regarded Wendy with some suspicion.

"Are you allied with him?"

Wendy glanced back at the captain, who was standing impatiently under a palm tree. "I'm not sure. He saved my life, so I don't think he's a threat to me."

"I told you that days ago."

"I know, and I wasn't sure what to think of it then." Wendy shook her head. "But that's not important right now. The Lost Boys have taken the Jolly Roger, but I assume you know that already."

Tiger Lily nodded.

"Will you help us - them - get it back?"

"I have no love for the pirates, but our alliance with the boys seems to have disappeared," Tiger Lily said, relaxing slightly.

"I don't particularly like most of the pirates either, but it's like you said, Hook and I have a ... connection."

She nodded.

"So, will you help?"

"If we do, I have some conditions."

"Of course," Wendy said, nodding.

"First, no bloodshed. None of the boys can be killed."

"I would have asked for the same."

"And once the pirates have their ship back, they much leave and never return."

"And me?"

"You can go with them, or you can stay. You are no threat to us."

Nodding, Wendy turned to go back. "I'll discuss this with them and come with the response tomorrow, here, at noon."

Tiger Lily disappeared silently into the forest.

"Well?" Hook said as she approached.

"They will help, as long as none of the boys are killed and you all leave to never return."

The surprise that had spread over Hook's face at the beginning of Wendy's news now turned very conflicted. "Kill none, and never come back?"

"You said yourself that there are loads of other islands, why stay here?"

His jaw clenched.

"Peter," Wendy said stiffly, pursing her lips and shaking her head. "this is about Peter."

"Why else do you think I'm here? The scenery? If it wasn't for that boy, I would be anywhere else." He turned and started towards the mountains.

"Come on," Wendy said, hurrying after him. "Can't you just think about it? Just let it go!"

Hook said nothing as he tramped through the underbrush.

"Captain!" Nothing, just the snapping of branches. "Hook!" He just kept walking. "James!" He stopped but didn't turn.

Wendy quickly stepped forward, standing in front of him. "You have let Peter Pan, a foolish little boy, rule you. Your life is filled with plans of revenge, thoughts of hatred. You're letting him win!"

He stared at her. "That's easy for you to say. He stole my hand! He tried to kill me!"

"So did you!" Wendy retorted. "He stole years from me, I waited and waited for him to come back for me and he never did." She noticed that she was shouting and quickly lowered her voice. "But I decided not to waste my time being angry at him, so I've gotten over it. You should do the same and get on with your life."

"If you're so over him, why have you avoided him the whole time you have been on the island?"

She sighed. "Alright, you have a point there." She paused, thinking. "Okay, if you agree to Tiger Lily's terms, my role in the taking back of the Jolly Roger will be being the distraction." She held out her hand for him to shake.

"And after we've taken the ship back?"

"I'll go with you, never to return," Wendy said without hesitation, surprised at how quickly she had made up her mind.

He looked her directly in the eye, gauging whether she was telling the truth or not. Satisfied, he shook her hand. "Alright, if Tiger Lily and her braves can help us get the Jolly Roger back, I'll make sure none of those boys get killed and then we'll leave to never return."

"Excellent," came a voice suddenly from the bushes. Tiger Lily stepped into the light with a slight smile on her face at their surprised expressions. "I accept that deal."


	17. promises

In Tiger Lily's wigwam, the three slightly reluctant allies sat around a map drawn on a large piece of deerskin. Hook and Wendy sat on one side and Tiger Lily sat on the other.

The plan was fairly straightforward. Wendy would go aboard the ship and while the boys were distracted, Tiger Lily, Kitchi, and Machk would sneak into the captain's cabin. Wendy would get Peter into the cabin alone, where the four of them would incapacitate him. Once he was dealt with, the pirates and the rest of Tiger Lily's braves would take the rest of the ship. All the boys would be tied up and brought to shore.

The only problem was Tinker Bell.

"She's just a tiny fairy," Hook scoffed dismissively.

"Fairies should not be underestimated," Tiger Lily said.

"I could distract her," Wendy said. "She hates me."

Hook sent her a questioning look.

"Jealousy," Wendy said simply.

He shrugged. "Alright, make sure she goes into the cabin with you and Pan."

"Once the ship is yours again, you leave immediately," Tiger Lily said. "before the Lost Boys make another attempt."

Wendy and Hook shared a quick glance, he raised his eyebrows slightly and she nodded. "Alright," he said, turning back to Tiger Lily. "That's what will happen."

Just before they left the village, Tiger Lily handed Wendy a leather pouch held closed with a drawstring.

"What is it?" she asked.

"See for yourself."

Wendy opened the pouch and found it full of pixie dust. She looked up in surprise. "Thank you."

"It will help you get aboard the ship easier," Tiger Lily said simply.

Hook had gotten his men together and they all made their way towards Mermaid Lagoon. After he had made sure all his men knew what they were doing, he fell a little behind and took his place beside Wendy. They both said nothing as they walked through the forest that was now dark and humming with all the sounds that accompanied the night.

At the edge of the water, Wendy took a small handful of the pixie dust and sprinkled it over herself. She looked back at the pirates and natives who were all hidden in the trees. As she glanced over at Hook, she felt her feet leave the ground for a moment, but then she was back on the ground. Then she turned towards the ship that lay at the mouth of the lagoon and thought of flying and sailing and having wonderful adventures.

She rose from the ground completely and, with a last glance back at the piercing blue eyes in the bushes, she flew over the still water towards the Jolly Roger.

As she approached the ship, she heard the chatter and laughter of the boys and almost turned back. But she kept going, reminding herself that they wouldn't be harmed seriously in any way. That was the deal with the pirates. Peter's clear laugh rose above all the others and Wendy waited for the tell-tale flutter in her chest, but it didn't come. Maybe what she'd been telling herself all this time was true, maybe she was really over him.

Taking a deep breath, Wendy landed quietly on the quarter deck. The boys were all sitting in a circle on the main deck, listening intently as Peter told them of some adventure that he had had. Taking flight again, Wendy rose above the ship's wheel and started to make her way down to the main deck.

It was Slightly who saw her first. "Peter!" he hissed sharply, pointing in her direction.

Peter, who had been sitting with his back to her, turned around quickly to see Wendy alight on the deck not too far from him. He was standing up with his dagger out in a flash.

"Who are you, grown-up?" he said suspiciously.

Summoning all the affection she once had for Peter, Wendy acted disappointed. "Don't you recognize me, Peter? I know I've grown up, but I'm not that different."

He narrowed his eyes.

Wendy stepped forward, causing Peter to hold his blade up closer to her neck. "It's me, Peter, it's Wendy!" she exclaimed.

Her name rippled through the whispers of the boys as they remembered her.

"Mother!" shouted the twins, nearly knocking her over in a hug. Soon all of them were around her, hugging her and clamouring for her attention. Even though her heart hadn't fluttered at the sound of Peter's laugh, Wendy realized that she had missed this, being the Lost Boys' mother.

Out of the corner of her eye, Wendy saw three shadows slide over the deck, and again she felt the pang of guilt. She forced a smile, they weren't going to get hurt. "It's so lovely to see you all again."

She noticed that Peter was standing a little ways away, Tinker Bell on his shoulder. She looked decidedly angry and he looked like he didn't know how to feel.

"Children," Wendy said quietly but firmly. "I need to speak to Peter alone, please." They all quickly backed off and Wendy walked to the door of the captain's cabin. Peter followed her and just before he closed the door behind him, Tinker Bell flitted in, just as Wendy had suspected she would.

"Peter," Wendy said, turning to him. "It's good to see you too."

"You grew up," he said simply.

"I couldn't exactly control it."

"You said you wouldn't."

"You said you'd come back."

He hesitated. "No, I didn't."

Wendy combed her fingers through her hair. "Now," she said.

Tiger Lily and Machk jumped from the shadows and each grabbed one of Peter's arms. Kitchi managed to trap Tinker Bell underneath a bed sheet and he held the opening tightly shut as Wendy quickly tied it up with a piece of rope.

Peter struggled against his captors. "Wendy?" he said, looking at her in dismay. "What are you doing?"

She could hardly look at him as she tied his arms and legs, the betrayal in his eyes was too much. Once he was secure, Tiger Lily and Machk set him down in a chair.

There was commotion outside and Peter tensed again. "Wendy, what-"

"They'll be fine," she said quickly. "They're not going to hurt them. They promised."

He snorted. "And you trust a pirate's promise?"

"More than I do a boy's one."

The door flew open and Hook stormed inside. "It's done, they're all tied up and ready to be brought to shore." He seemed ready to leave, but then he saw Peter, tied up and defenseless in front of him. His hook twitched and Wendy was about to step between them, when he turned to her, making Wendy's chest swell with pride.

"Everything ready here?"

She nodded quickly and Machk and Kitchi brought Peter and Tinker Bell out of the cabin, Tiger Lily following close behind. Peter looked between Wendy and Hook with a dawning realization.

"He has found himself a Wendy," he said so quietly that only the three Piccaninny tribe members heard him.

"Are you alright?" Hook asked once they were gone.

Wendy nodded, letting herself smile a little. "We did it."

Hook smiled as well, a real full smile that changed his entire face. "Yes, we did."


	18. epilogue: embarking

It was a beautiful day, the sun shone on the water and the sails were full of wind. Gulls soared overhead and Neverland was far behind them and out of sight. Wendy sat at a table on the quarter deck poring over a map, tracing her finger over all the other islands and their names. Hook's feathered hat sat on the table beside the map and his red coat hung on the empty chair across from her. He stood at the edge of the ship, leaning on the railing and squinting into the distance.

"Have you been to all these different islands?" Wendy asked.

"Mm-hm," Hook hummed in agreement. "all of them."

"Baproyye?"

"A bit crowded. Amazing fish cuisine."

"Kilpirah?"

"Lovely scenery, waterfalls, crystal caves and the like."

"Dragon Peninsula?" Wendy looked up. "Does it actually-"

"Have dragons?" Hook interrupted. "Of course it does."

"Dragons are real?"

He looked back at her and smirked. "You've seen mermaids and fairies, and you're surprised that dragons exist?"

She stood up and joined him at the railing. "What about centaurs?"

"Yep."

"Gnomes?"

He laughed. "Annoying little buggers."

"Unicorns?"

"I haven't seen one myself, but I've heard lots of stories about them."

Wendy nodded and looked out at the horizon. "This world is so much bigger than I thought it was. So many possibilities, so many different places to go." She looked over at Hook and noticed that he was watching her intently.

"So, where do you want to go?"

She smiled and tilted her head to the side. "Dragon Peninsula."

A grin spread across his face. "Excellent choice."

For a moment, they just stood there, inches apart. Forget-me-not blue and chestnut brown eyes. Hearts racing and thoughts swirling. They both leaned forward a fraction of an inch, stopping suddenly, each waiting for the other to turn away.

Finally, throwing all caution to the wind, Wendy leaned in and kissed him.


End file.
